Ex-Subway pitchman sentenced to 15-1/2 years on child sex charges

INDIANAPOLIS (Reuters) - Former Subway sandwich chain pitchman Jared Fogle on Thursday was sentenced to 15-1/2 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to child pornography and sex charges.

Fogle, who became famous after losing weight on a diet that included sandwiches from the fast-food chain, agreed in August to a deal with prosecutors under which he would plead guilty to charges of child pornography and traveling for illicit paid sex with minors.

Fogle agreed in court on Thursday to avoid pornography, get sexual disorder treatment and will be a registered sex offender. U.S. District Judge Tanya Walton Pratt also sentenced him to a lifetime of supervision and a $175,000 fine.

Pratt went beyond what either side wanted: prosecutors had sought a 12-1/2 year sentence, while Fogle's attorneys had asked for five years.

"The defendant was obsessed with child pornography and sex with minors," Pratt said. Fogle was remanded to the custody of a U.S. Marshall, and Pratt recommend he go to a federal prison in Littleton, Colorado.

Dr. John Bradford, a forensic psychiatrist testifying for the defense at the sentencing hearing, said Fogle was mostly attracted to older female teenagers 16 and 17 years old, not prepubescent children.

Prosecutors countered the testimony by reading a text from Fogle in which he said he wanted younger prostitutes, "the younger the better."

Bradford also said Fogle has an alcohol problem, and had a compulsive eating disorder that moved into "hypersexuality" after he lost weight.